CABLE
FALL 2014
the Counselors’ Newsletter
President’s LETTER See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you. Isaiah 42:9 Dear Friends, Every August when I was a young girl my mom would take my sisters and me shopping. We would take the car to a bus stop, ride the bus downtown, and pick out three new dresses for the school year. As a special treat, we got to have a hamburger and soda for lunch at the counter in the drug store. It was a special time. New clothes, a new school year, a fresh start. There is something invigorating about the thought of something new.
INSIDE: MORE THAN A CLUB | 2 CLUB NEWS | 5 THE ESTHER SCHOOL | 7
In GEMS we look forward to a new season and for some, a new club. We have a new and fresh opportunity to bring the message to the young girls that God has entrusted to us. For those who were able to attend the GEMS Leadership Conference and/or one of the training opportunities in your area, you have new ideas and insights that can be incorporated into your club. God is at work, and He has given us the privilege of being a part of that work—right here, right now. He has led GEMS from its beginning and will continue to guide and direct us as we trust Him. For the last eight months, GEMS has been without
an Executive Director. God has been leading us through this time with a beautiful team of women on staff who have taken on extra assignments to make sure that your needs in club are met without interruption. They have done an amazing job of trusting God with their time and talents, and we are very grateful to each one. Many of you have joined the search team in praying for God’s direction for a new Executive Director. He has answered those prayers, and we are excited to introduce you to the woman He has chosen, Kristine Palosaari. Kristine is an energetic, positive woman whose faith in Jesus carries her through life on a daily basis. She is a strong communicator, has a heart for meeting the needs of women and girls, and her gift of encouragement brings out the best in those around her. Her past work experiences provide her with a variety of skills that prepare her well for leadership in the GEMS ministry. Together, we prayerfully look forward to what God is going to do in each of our clubs this year and in the years to come. Blessings to you,
Mary Jo Vis GEMS Executive Board President
GEMS EXECUTIVE BOARD Shirley Batts – Portage, Michigan Cheryl Boer – Gilbert, Arizona Linda Hermen – Beecher, Illinois Judy Kapteyn – Sarnia, Ontario Mary Klingenberg – Mount Hope, Ontario Debra Liccar – Crete, Illinois Pat Scott – Jacksonville, Florida Amy VandenBerg – Grand Rapids, Michigan Mary Jo Vis – Riverside, California Cindy Visser – Zeeland, Michigan
You, obviously, are involved in your local GEMS Club. But have you ever ventured out to a regional training? What about one of our international events? Or have you and your girls participated in supporting The Esther School or one of our clubs in a developing country?
Office Manager - Michele DeHaan
The fact is, what you do in your local club is amazing. Period. Your work with the girls God has entrusted to your care is invaluable. But, simply by being a GEMS counselor, you are part of a global sisterhood of women seeking God, serving girls, and finding joy in fulfilling their role as mentors to the next generation.
Managing Editor - Kelli Gilmore
You are part of something bigger.
GEMS STAFF Director of International Ministries - Jan Boone Training Manager - Lenae Bulthuis
Graphic & Web Designer - Lisa Hunter Customer Relations - Hannah Noorman Executive Director - Kristine Palosaari Conference Coordinator - Alecia VanHulzen Senior Editor - Amy White To honor God by being responsible stewards of His creation, Cable is printed on post-consumer recycled paper and uses vegetable-based inks.
Canada Post Publication Sales Agreement #41124116, return undeliverable copies to Cable c/o GEMS Girls’ Clubs, PO Box 39, Norwich, ON N0J1P0
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MORE THAN A CLUB
One of the best ways to engage in your position as a GEMS counselor and understand the global impact of your role is to attend one of the training events hosted in your area. These workshops offer the opportunity to connect with other women and receive tips and ideas for club. They are refreshing, inspiring, and informative. As you interact with other women from your region you will learn and grow together. It really is an amazing experience! The GEMS website has more information about when and where your local events will be held. Skating into a New Season Often, the same amazing volunteers who host these training events coordinate events for your girls, too. Girls benefit from interacting with peers outside of their club as much as you do! And, these gatherings are just one more way you can encourage your GEMS and build community in your local club and beyond. Recently, Lisa Cooper and Amy Billingsley—the Leadership Trainer and Area Coordinator from the southwest region of the United States—hosted a North Texas fun day. This volunteer duo was excited to get the word out about GEMS and help Bring the Message in a fun, activity-driven way. As Amy puts it, “In Texas, there is no better place to do that in the summertime than in air conditioning!” So they picked a central location, found a
“This gathering gave us connection, promotion of the clubs locally, and did not take too much prep or financial committment to pull it off. It was a win, win, win!” local skating rink, and sent out invites to all of the clubs in their area. “The skating rink offered a group room at a low rate,” Amy explained, “so we took advantage of it!” Girls came with their moms and counselors. “The girls skated initially,” Amy said, “and then we headed to the group room for a get-to-know-you game and some yummy cupcakes. After some introductions were made, it was enjoyable to watch the girls go back out and skate again after having become acquainted with GEMS girls from other clubs.” Decked out in their club’s GEMS shirts, girls enjoyed the day skating, laughing, and making new friends. From the youngest to the oldest GEMS, everyone had fun participating in the outing. “This gathering gave us connection, promotion of the clubs locally, and did not take too much prep or financial commitment to pull it off. It was a win, win, win!” Amy said.
Friendships AND BEYOND Friendship is a gift—especially the kind of friends who are there through thick and thin. Proverbs 27:17 says, As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. In other words: our conflicts, laughs, disagreements, tears, and intentional interactions help shape us. So what does that look like for the girls in your club who seem to have friendship issues pop up every other week? How do you help them find the best in each situation and handle it well? To get you started, check out these ideas from the September 2014 issue of SHINE brightly Magazine!
Your Slice of Love, Page 16. Who doesn’t love pizza? It’s delicious, it comes in all kinds of styles, and you can eat it with your hands! But, like pizza, we can get stuck thinking our favorite toppings or our preferred way of eating it are the only way. This attitude is often true of how we view community, too. We limit it. We might think community is just about the area we live in, the people who go to our church, or our immediate family. But community is so much more than that! Use the “Take a Bite” section on page 17 to talk about ways you can build community within your GEMS Club. Pick two of the items on the list or come up with your own and make a promise to do them together this season. And when you’re finished, celebrate with a pizza party!
can use SHINE brightly in your club. Don’t miss out! Visit gemsgc.org/blog.
GEMS has a blog just for girls, too! Send your girls to gemsgc.org/reimagine for more fun! In this space girls can read articles that aren’t in the magazine, have access to all kinds of crafts and recipes, and listen to podcasts from Dear Annie!
Things You Don’t Want to Miss! The beginning of the GEMS season can be a bit fuzzy with lots of information coming your way. But here are some things you don’t want to miss! Read the Leaders’ Blog! Did you know GEMS has a blog specifically for GEMS counselors? Each week it’s updated with helpful tips and inspirational thoughts, and monthly we share more ways you
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In With the New, Page 4. Amberlee and her friend Claire used to be connected at the hip. They did everything together! But when new interests and new friends begin to separate them, Amberlee has to figure out how to navigate her BFF’s new group of friends while feeling really confused about the growing distance between them. Read the story then ask your girls if any of them have ever felt like they were losing their best friend (be conscious, of course, of any difficult dynamics between friends in your small group who may be having issues with each other). If so, ask them to share how they felt and what they did. For those who haven’t experienced
this, ask them what they would do if they were in Amberlee or Claire’s shoes. If you have experienced a similar situation, feel free to share, too!
Get Connected! CAMP Summer may be fading away, but for the 170 GEMS who attended Get Connected! Camp in August, the memories are still fresh in their minds.
Girls from across the US and Canada came to Cran-Hill Ranch in Rodney, Michigan for GEMS summer camp for early teens. At camp, girls connected with new friends, with mentors, and—most importantly— with God.
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Camp is always an amazing time, and the fun girls have is only part of the incredible experience. They overcome fears, conquer new challenges, and learn God’s truth: that they are valued, loved, and made with a purpose. Here’s what one grateful mom said about her daughters’ experiences: “When my oldest daughter came home from her first Get Connected! experience two years ago, I was overjoyed with the amount of faith building, self-esteem building, and just pure fun and joy this camp provided. Now, having her attend for the second time she is doubly blessed and is asking how to apply to be a CIT and eventually a leader so she can help other girls have the same amazing experiences.
“I was overjoyed with the amount of faith building,
self-esteem building, and just pure fun and joy this camp provided.” “I was nervous about having my younger daughter go this year, but it was an amazing experience for her as well. She felt safe, loved, and cared for. She talks nonstop about the chapel time— especially the messages and worship songs, the people who helped her through times of fear and anxiety, and the presence of God at this camp. She is so proud to have done things she didn’t think she could ever do. I can’t put into words how much this means to me…What a wonderful blessing this camp was to her (and in turn to me)! Praise God!” Start Planning Camp is one more way you can help your girls connect with the truth of God’s Word.
Offered every other summer, it’s not too early to start planning ways to get your oldest GEMS to camp in 2016. Spread the word, and stay tuned for more information on the location and date! This is an experience your GEMS will remember for a lifetime! Leaving a Legacy For the past several years, Wendy Deurloo served as the director of Get Connected! Camp as well as a passionate advocate for all things GEMS. She served on training teams in both North America and Zambia and was dedicated to her local club— tirelessly pursuing girls in order to tell them about God’s amazing love for them. Shortly before camp, Wendy went home to be with Jesus. And while her presence was deeply, deeply missed—her legacy was felt in profound ways throughout the week. Her love and faith will continue to resound throughout the GEMS ministry for years to come.
GEMS LEADERSHIP TRAINING
GEMSGEMS CONFERENCE
CLUB NEWS
LEADERSHIP literally felt like my TRAINING“Isoul was gently removed,
But when you back up—when you zoom out—you start to see the gravity of what God is doing in and through GEMS as a larger ministry. Your club, your counselor team, your girls—you’re all part of something bigger. Part of a sisterhood. Part of a global movement of women bent on loving God in such a profound way that it can’t be ignored. We want to help you understand that you’re part of something big, part of this sisterhood that transcends your community and your club and that reaches around the world and straight into eternity. And because we believe it’s so important, we want to equip you for your role as a counselor. Leadership training is one of the biggest ways we do that. It’s the best way we can assist you in your work. We want to refresh, restore, and encourage you. Here’s what counselor Lori Stakenas-Schneider from Ludington, Michigan had to say about her time at the GEMS Leadership Conference this past July:
cleansed, and returned whole and new. I didn’t even realize it needed it.”
ConneCtions Let It Counselor Helps for SHINE brightly and Sparkle Magazines.
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“I completely didn’t expect the experience I had! I laughed, I cried, and I met amazing new people. “The workshops were helpful and full of great new ideas. I also loved talking with other counselors and coordinators about what has/hasn’t worked in their clubs.
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Send Me!
$4.50 US $4.99 CN
A ministry of Dynamic Youth Ministries. gemsgc.org
“However, my favorite part was the speakers. I literally felt like my soul was gently removed, cleansed, and returned whole and new. I didn’t even realize it needed it. It was a very humbling experience! Just this week I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Although this is a life-altering diagnosis, it is not life ending. Throughout this whole process of diagnosis, I held real close to [a verse from Conference] and it, as well as God, calmed me. I believe God gives us things for a reason, and I honestly believe God gave me the ability to go to this Conference because I needed the soul cleaning and verse before this new journey!” Plan for Pennsylvania! Start planning to bring your entire team to next year’s Conference! We will be at Messiah College in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania July 9-12. This is an amazing event you will not want to miss!
BRING THE
MESSAGE
2014-15
ISaiah 6:8
DIGGING DEEPER The Bible lessons for both the Awareness (grades 1-3) and Discovery (grades 4-6) Levels of GEMS are found in Sparkle and SHINE brightly Magazines respectively. Connections is available for you, the counselor, and has all of the teaching helps you need to work through these engaging lessons at club. But there’s a lot to cover! If you don’t get through it all, let your girls know they can download the Digging Deeper questions from the GEMS website to help them go further with the Bible lessons in SHINE. Visit gemsgc.org and click on the picture of the magazines!
CLUB DUES Don’t forget that Club Dues ($2.75/girl) need to be submitted to the Service Center on or before November 15. This year, you can submit your dues quickly and easily on the GEMS website.
For US
It’s something to celebrate, to be sure! We hope you realize that what you do at club matters.
Ocotober 2014
For Canada
Girls are meeting Jesus. That’s what GEMS is all about, and it’s happening all over the world. We constantly hear stories SPRING SEMINAR about the life-changing commitment girls are making to walk with God. Girls are getting it. They’re starting to understand the magnitude of His love and what that tangibly means for their lives.
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ENGAGE YOUR GIRLS Girls from Dearborn Christian Fellowship Church in Michigan learned about service both locally and internationally last season. On a global scale, the club focused on The Esther School and raised over $650 to support the students and teachers there. “The girls put on a dinner to raise the money,” explained Club Coordinator, Hope Howell. On a local level, counselors took girls to a nursing home to interact with residents and spread their joy and love—an outing that surely blessed all parties involved! From goofy games, Bible studies, international awareness, and community service, this entire club learned lots about being God’s hands and feet in the world. The girls were able to see that their words and actions matter here and now, and that God wants to use them to make a big difference!
As you look forward to your GEMS season, how are you going to engage your girls—with God’s Word, with their peers, and with the world around them? Be intentional, be prayerful, and don’t forget to have some fun!
SISTER CLUBS As GEMS expands its presence internationally, a team of women continues to travel to Zambia each year to train and equip the cluster of clubs that is growing in and around Lusaka. This is the site of our first international clubs, and these annual trips are fruitful for a variety of reasons. When the training team left in late August, they went with multiple packages of letters from North American Sister Clubs. This annual exchange of letters is a blessing to those girls and counselors who receive them on both sides of the ocean.
FORMER GEM STARTS INTERNATIONAL CLUB The Internet is a great resource for collecting information and spreading ideas. For GEMS, it’s one way we start new clubs around the world. But even more effective than that are the former GEMS and counselors who share their love for the ministry with others and even start clubs as they spread across the globe.
Every Sister Club has played a key role in helping start and maintain our international clubs. Our work around the world would not be possible without the generosity of clubs in the US and Canada who partner with clubs overseas. Thanks again to all of you who have participated, and thanks to those of you who are planning to serve in this capacity this year!
A former GEM from Nova Scotia, Tiffany Blaauwendraat Talen, started our newest international club in Kampala, Uganda. When Tiffany looked around at all the needs of children there, she knew there was one thing she could do that would really make a difference—start a GEMS club for girls!
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So Tiffany met with the pastor and leaders of her church and described the GEMS ministry to them. She received total support to start the club and is currently working to identify Ugandan women who can work alongside her as she organizes and starts the club. She will train the women to serve with her and they will eventually continue with the club when she and her husband return home. We are so thankful for Tiffany. She is taking the sisterhood of GEMS well beyond her home of Nova Scotia. Please pray for Tiffany and for the counselors that will serve with her!
A member of the training team works with women in Zambia.
THE Esther SCHOOL We are excited and so thankful that God has filled each of the staff positions at the school for the upcoming year, and we encourage you to visit estherschool.org and explore each of the North American staff member’s blogs. Stay up-to-date on the ways God is working in all of their lives as well as in the lives of all those they serve in Zambia! We invite you to join us as we begin the search for staff for next year. Two teachers will be needed as well as a school administrator. Please direct anyone who may be interested to the website for details. Sponsors Needed A handful of student sponsors are still needed for the new preschool class at The Esther School this fall. If you are looking for a way God can use you, your club, or your family to make a difference, please consider this opportunity! For $50/month ($600 annually) you can provide a student with a life-changing Christian education.
Brent and Kathy Miedema Administrator of Site Development and Finance (Michigan)
David and Jillian Draayer School Administrator/ Grade 1 teacher; fall only (Michigan)
CeCe Walden Preschool Teacher (Indiana)
Rachel VanGent Kindergarten teacher (California)
Jean Selles Grade 2 teacher (Montana)
Heather Miedema Music education teacher/ homeschool coordinator (Michigan)
Dana Krol Student Sponsorship Coordinator (Michigan)
Lisa Brearley Grade 1 teacher; winter and spring (Michigan)
COLLECT DIMES TO MAKE A BIG IMPACT Dimes aren’t worth much. But, if you do some simple math, you’ll see that if you add your dimes to the dimes that 14,500 SHINE readers have, it’s a lot! And the collective impact of those dimes can be huge. That’s why this season SHINE brightly readers are coming together to collect dimes for the music program at The Esther School, a school for orphaned and under resourced kids in Zambia, Africa. With the money that’s collected, instruments, music, and other supplies will be purchased. This is big. This program will touch the lives of each student at the school in a unique way, and your club can be part of it! It’s simple. Here’s what you can do: 1. Collect dimes.
2. Send your dimes or a check for their value to: Dime Drive, GEMS Girls’ Clubs, 1333 Alger St. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49507. 3. Spread the word! We will be tallying dimes each month and keeping a running tally in the back of SHINE brightly Magazine as well as at gemsgc.org. So, send us updates of how many dimes you’ve collected often! Need more information? Visit gemsgc.org and click on the SHINE brightly Magazine or check out the September issue. You can also find a link to a short video that you can use in club to get your girls excited about this opportunity to live out Micah 6:8—acting justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God. Fall 2014 | 7
Dynamic Youth Ministries P.O. Box 39 Norwich, ON N0J 1P0
Bring THE MESSAGE Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” Isaiah 6:8 We communicate. A lot. We share stories, ideas, struggles, plans, and opinions. We suggest vacation destinations and hair stylists and tell people what we’re grateful for. Whether it’s via technology or face-to-face—whether it’s to a total stranger or our best friend—when we want to be heard we know how to make it happen. But amidst all of the messages we send and receive on a daily basis, are we emphasizing the message that most needs to be shared? This season we will be learning how to Bring the Message! of God’s love and grace through our words and actions. Because BRING while most of THE us are quick to MESSAGE ISaiah 6:8 recommend our favorite restaurant, we are slow to share the best news ever: that God loves us deeply and sent His Son to rescue us from our sins.
It’s a message worth sharing! We can speak it. We can live it. We can tell people about Jesus and His love. We can show them with every aspect of our lives why following God is the best choice we’ve ever made. And that’s exactly what we’re going to be learning how to do this GEMS season! Theme Night and Beyond Lots of clubs do a theme night for a kickoff to the season, but if you haven’t hosted one yet, it’s not too late! Check out the Theme 2014-2015 Resource Book Theme Resource Book (available through the GEMS online store, Supply Catalog, or by contacting the Service Center) for all of the information you need for opening a Good News Café for your girls. Enjoy some tasty treats and learn more about what it looks like to be messengers who say, “Send me!” in response to God’s call to share the gospel wherever we go. Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Who shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” Isaiah 6:8
BRING THE
MESSAGE ISaiah 6:8
You can also check out all of the free theme resources available on the GEMS website. You can download the theme logo, PowerPoint, signs, customizable parent newsletters, monthly At the Table templates, everything you need for a family celebration, and more!